


I Still Love You

by blue_rose_123197



Series: Jaehwall [2]
Category: The Boyz (Korea Band)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-19
Updated: 2020-05-19
Packaged: 2021-03-02 20:54:54
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,673
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24173182
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blue_rose_123197/pseuds/blue_rose_123197
Summary: Jaehyun may not say it, but he still loves Hyunjoon.Sequel to 3 Times to Fall in Love
Relationships: Choi Chanhee | New/Moon Hyungseo | Kevin, Heo Hyunjoon | Hwall/Lee Jaehyun | Hyunjae, Ji Changmin | Q/Kim Younghoon, Ju Haknyeon/Kim Sunwoo
Series: Jaehwall [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1740511
Comments: 2
Kudos: 18





	I Still Love You

**Author's Note:**

> This is the sequel to 3 Times to Fall in Love. I recommend reading that book first to get a slightly better understanding of some of the events in this one.
> 
> I am posting this as a thank you for 500 hits on 3 Times to Fall in Love. I never thought I would get that many hits. Thank you!

The stars shone brightly, surrounding the moon and adding to its light. Hyunjoon watched them silently, the sand still beneath him, and the wind gently blowing his hair. He took in a deep breath, feeling the warmth of the summer. He looked down from the sky out to the water. The waves crashed peacefully. The moon shone brightly over the ocean. Hyunjoon would never get sick of it.

“I should have known I would find you out here.” Hyunjoon smiled, hearing the older boy sit in the sand beside him. “You didn’t freak out looking for me, did you?” Jaehyun chuckled, “No, not this time. I know you love it out here. It’s just so dark that I can’t see you from the house.” “Isn’t it so beautiful though?” Hyunjoon finally turned to look at Jaehyun. He felt his face heating up when he found the older already looking at him. Jaehyun smiled, “Yeah, it is beautiful.” For several moments, neither of them moved. Hyunjoon wanted Jaehyun to say something. He wanted to say something himself. Jaehyun spoke first, “Come on. We gotta meet Kevin and Chanhee for dinner. They’re waiting for us.” Jaehyun got up. Hyunjoon looked out at the water with its starry reflections one last time. He slowly rose and followed Jaehyun into the house.

“Do I have to dress up?” Jaehyun chuckled again, “No, but don’t wear your pajamas.” Hyunjoon pouted but went to change anyway. It wasn’t his fault that he was bored not doing anything all day, while the others were all at work. Kevin told him he should get a summer job. Hyunjoon had informed him that that most certainly would not satisfy his boredom. Hyunjoon was enjoying his summer off, before he had to go back to school in August. He wondered if he should have chosen a career path that didn’t require him several extra years of college. From what he knew, Eric, Sunwoo, and Haknyeon had all graduated already. He knew he was the only one in their friend group still in school.

Thinking about his other friends made Hyunjoon miss them. It had been almost 2 years since he’d last seen some of them. Juyeon had moved to LA over a year and a half ago to help his sister take care of her son and daughter. Sangyeon and Haknyeon had moved to Seoul only a few months later. From what Hyunjoon heard, Juyeon and his sister had moved to Seoul a few months ago. That meant that everyone was in Seoul now except for Hyunjoon, Jaehyun, Kevin, and Chanhee. Jaehyun and Chanhee had moved to be with Kevin and Hyunjoon just a year earlier, after they graduated. Kevin and Chanhee had had a long distance relationship before that, and it had only grown stronger when the four of them started living together.

As Hyunjoon followed Jaehyun into their favorite restaurant, he spotted his brother now, next to Chanhee, as the pair waited for them. Jaehyun greeted them cheerfully. Hyunjoon smiled in greeting, sitting down next to Jaehyun. After they ordered their food, Kevin turned to them all, “So I talked to Changmin earlier.” Jaehyun sipped his lemonade, “Really? How are the guys? Kinda miss them, even if they are annoying.” Chanhee gasped, “Oh my gosh, have Sunwoo and Haknyeon finally started dating yet??” Kevin snorted, “What kind of stupid question is that? Of course they haven’t. They’re dumb. Anyways, Changmin called cause he wanted to invite us to visit for this festival.” Chanhee and Jaehyun shared an excited look. “The Summer Seoul Festival,” Chanhee said, looking nostalgic, “Man, I miss it. It’s this festival that lasts a month and it’s so fun.”

Jaehyun nodded, “Jacob’s older brother has a booth there, and we used to help when we were in high school. It was always a blast.” Kevin smiled, “It seems like you guys want to go then? I can probably get off work for like a week.” Chanhee squealed, “I can get off for as long as I want.” Kevin rolled his eyes, “Don’t get yourself fired.” Chanhee slouched, “Why not? I hate my job! Besides, it’s just for the summer until the school year starts and I can go back to the little kids. Why can’t I spend the rest of the summer off? Hyunjoon and I could spend some time together. We never get to.” Kevin shook his head but smiled. He looked at Jaehyun, “Can you get off Hyung?” Jaehyun shrugged, “Maybe? I have a few appointments, but I think I’m open for a few days next week.”

“I’m open,” Hyunjoon said. Kevin laughed, “I know, it’s crazy. Are you gonna get a job?” Hyunjoon scrunched his face. “That’s a no then,” Kevin said, “In any case, do you guys wanna go next week then?” They all nodded. “Great,” Kevin clapped his hands, “I’ll tell Changmin to tell the guys we’re coming.” For the rest of dinner, they chatted excitedly about the trip. Later that night, Hyunjoon sat by the windowsill. “You really love those stars, huh?” Hyunjoon smiled, glancing back at Jaehyun, who stood by the bed with his wet hair and fresh clothes. He was plugging in his phone. Hyunjoon bounced up from the windowsill and climbed into the bed under the covers. Jaehyun smiled and laid down next to him. “Goodnight,” he said, turning off the lamp.

Hyunjoon felt the older boy’s arms wrap around him. He smiled, but still felt a little sad. He wanted to hear the older boy say more than that. He wanted Jaehyun to say he loved him. He wanted to tell Jaehyun that he loved the older boy too. Hyunjoon was too scared to say it. He worried that Jaehyun didn’t love him anymore. Hyunjoon was scared that if he said anything, he would ruin what they had. He was scared that if Jaehyun found out that Hyunjoon still loved him, he would leave. Hyunjoon didn’t want him to leave. He couldn’t say anything.

* * *

Jaehyun watched the ground approach from the plane window. He gently nudged Hyunjoon awake. He felt bad to wake up the younger boy. Hyunjoon hadn’t been sleeping well for weeks now. Jaehyun was worried. The boy had been having nightmares of his parents. From what Jaehyun knew, Kevin and Hyunjoon had lost their parents when Kevin was 17 and Hyunjoon was 16. Changmin’s parents, their aunt and uncle, had gained custody of the brothers, but allowed them to continue living in America on their own, not wanting them to have to move to an unfamiliar environment. Recently, Hyunjoon had been plagued with nightmares of their deaths, and Jaehyun had often been woken late at night to find the boy sobbing. Hyunjoon had made him promise not to tell Kevin about the dreams, not wanting to worry his brother. Now, Jaehyun nudged Hyunjoon again, finally rousing the boy, just as the plane hit the ground. Chanhee and Kevin were somewhere behind them on the plane.

As they finally made their way through security, and found their luggage, Jaehyun heard his name from behind them. He turned just in time to get an armful of Eric. He staggered with the sudden weight of the younger boy. From the corner of his eye, he noticed Hyunjoon’s displeased look. He chuckled, hugging Eric back, having forgotten how much he missed Eric’s bear hugs. A sort of war cry sounded from the direction where Eric had come from. Hyunjoon’s face turned to fear. He tried to hide behind Kevin, but it didn’t stop Haknyeon from catching him in another life-threatening hug. Nothing new from Haknyeon, but Jaehyun could feel himself getting jealous. Sunwoo had run up to Kevin and Chanhee and was excitedly greeting them. Jacob walked up to them at a normal pace, smiling kindly.

After greeting the four, they all went out to Jacob’s car. “Where are the others?” Jaehyun asked Jacob as they walked. “Well, I’m not sure where exactly Juyeon is, but Sangyeon is taking a nap because he’s tired from having to entertain Chaos 1 and 2 back there,” he gestured to Haknyeon and Sunwoo, who were annoying Kevin and Chanhee with questions. Eric was bouncing along on Jacob’s other side, and Hyunjoon walked silently next to Jaehyun. Jaehyun wanted nothing more than to intertwine their hands. He resisted. “And then, Changmin and Younghoon are at their apartment I think.” “Oh no,” Jaehyun sighed, “They live together now? That’s not good.”

Jacob laughed, “I know right? I told them the day they moved in that I didn’t care what they did in there but I am _never_ visiting them. By the way, we got you guys hotel rooms. Two. I hope you and Hyunjoon don’t mind rooming together, cause I assume Kevin and Chanhee are gonna want their own room.” Hyunjoon suddenly spoke up, “We share a room.” Jacob stopped walking and looked at him, “I-alright.” He kept walking. Jaehyun smiled and rolled his eyes. Hyunjoon’s face didn’t change. He looked up at Jaehyun. They let the others pass them, before Jaehyun started walking again. “You took him by surprise.” “Oh,” Hyunjoon said, “I just meant that we wouldn’t mind sharing a room.” Jaehyun smiled, “I know, but he doesn’t really hear you say much, so I’m sure that was surprising to him.”

Jaehyun knew that Hyunjoon had been talking a lot more lately. He had always been comfortable talking around Jaehyun and Kevin. In the past year, he had also grown comfortable talking around Chanhee. Back when Jaehyun first met Hyunjoon, he didn’t realize how surprising it was that Hyunjoon spoke to him, not until he noticed how the boy hardly said anything when their other friends were present. Over the past year, Hyunjoon had warmed up greatly to Chanhee. Now, they were all pretty used to hearing Hyunjoon speak, even if he was still significantly quieter than the rest of them.

The car ride to the hotel was rather uneventful. It mainly involved Haknyeon and Sunwoo loudly interviewing the new arrivals, until Jacob eventually told them to shut up so he could concentrate on not crashing the car. When they reached the hotel, Jacob helped them check into their rooms, with the demon duo and Eric following curiously. “Here’s the other room,” Jacob said, opening the door to the room that Hyunjoon and Jaehyun would be staying in. Chanhee and Kevin had already dropped their bags off into their room. “Now that that’s done, do you guys want to come get lunch? Sangyeon just woke up and he’s hungry, so everyone’s invited.” Kevin snorted, “That’s gonna be chaos.”

Jacob nodded but still waited for them all to reply. Haknyeon and Sunwoo excitedly bounced around Jacob, cheering that they wanted to go. Eric also nodded enthusiastically. Kevin looked at Chanhee and shrugged, “We’re hungry I guess.” Jacob looked to Hyunjoon and Jaehyun. Hyunjoon hesitated, but nodded slowly after a moment. “Great,” Jacob said, “Jaehyun?” Jaehyun shrugged, “I’m gonna stay here and nap a little. It’s hard to sleep on a plane.” Jacob nodded and began to lead the others out. Hyunjoon looked at Jaehyun and pouted. Jaehyun chuckled, “Don’t worry, you’ll be fine. You’ve got Kevin and Chanhee.” Hyunjoon hesitated another moment, but then reluctantly followed the others, letting the door close behind him.

Jaehyun sighed. He picked one of the beds and laid himself down, letting sleep take over his body. When he finally blinked awake, it was to the sound of loud knocking on his hotel room door. He tiredly got up and slowly opened the door, only for a flash of red hair to rush past him and land blurringly on the unused bed. Jaehyun sighed and closed the door, following Sunwoo back into the room. Sunwoo bounced up enthusiastically, “Hi Hyung!” Jaehyun gave him a tired smile, sitting down on the bed opposite. Sunwoo pouted, “Wow Hyung, you weren’t kidding about needing sleep.” Jaehyun shrugged, “It really is difficult to sleep on a plane. I don’t know how the others managed it.”

Sunwoo shrugged, “Maybe, I don’t know, don’t fly overnight?” “Eh,” Jaehyun waved him off, “It was cheaper. Plus, we got here sooner. Anyways, how was lunch? I hope no one thought I was skipping or that I didn’t want to see everyone.” Sunwoo turned over, letting his head hang off the edge of the bed, “Eh, everyone kinda just asked if you missed the plane. But we’re all really excited that you’re here Hyung. All of you.” Jaehyun smiled, “I know, and I’m sorry. Are we going out to the booths for dinner tonight?” Sunwoo bounced up from the bed, “Yep! And we all got off from work while you guys are here, so we can all spend time together since we miss you!” “Yeah, we miss you guys too.”

Sunwoo hopped around the bed, throwing himself back on it and resting his head on his chin, “You guys should just move here! Then we can all be here together!” Jaehyun smiled but shook his head, “Nah, we love it in America. Plus, I don’t know what I would do being stuck in the city all the time again. The condos, the beach, the whole small town business, it’s more my speed. Not nearly as chaotic, always calm, and pretty quiet too.” While fumbling around trying to lay comfortably, Sunwoo accidentally slid too far near the edge of the bed and went crashing down onto the floor, most certainly bothering whomever was rooming below. Jaehyun stifled a laugh, “Unlike here. By the way, I heard that Changmin and Younghoon are living together now. Jacob says he won’t even walk in.”

Sunwoo shook his head as he (rather dramatically, mind you) splayed himself back onto the bed, throwing his arms up in some dramatic show of annoyance, “Hyung, I don’t think _anyone_ will go into their apartment. We are all boycotting it like our lives depend on it, and they do! You’ll die if you go in there. Supposedly, Juyeon Hyung made the mistake of going in to pick something up from them. They say he was never the same again,” Sunwoo hid under the covers, then peeked out, looking around as if Changmin and Younghoon were going to crawl out of the walls and drag him screaming into their apartment to be eaten by demons or something. Jaehyun rolled his eyes at Sunwoo, “Hey, where’s your partner in crime? I swear it’s a bad omen to only have one of you here and not the other.”

Sunwoo crawled out from under the covers, “Oh, Haknyeon? He’s back at our apartment, probably watching something.” Jaehyun began to choke on nothing. “You two are living together?” he rasped. Sunwoo nodded, rolling over and studying his fingers, “Haknyeon, Eric, and I are sharing an apartment to split the rent.” Jaehyun wasn’t sure if he should be relieved or more scared to know that Eric lived with them too. He decided that it might be both. Before he could say something else, his phone lit up with a text. He picked it up, rolling his eyes at Younghoon’s rather dramatic text asking if Jaehyun would at least show up for dinner that afternoon. Jaehyun sent a quick reply, before looking back up at Sunwoo, but he was again interrupted from speaking by another knock at the door.

He rose to answer it, while Sunwoo rolled back across the bed and threw his legs up in possibly the most ridiculously dramatic way of getting up. Jaehyun wondered if the kid ever stopped moving. When he opened the door, Kevin’s smiling face greeted him, “Good, you’re awake Hyung.” Jaehyun snorted, “Of course I’m awake, Sunwoo is here to make sure of that.” Sunwoo popped up under Jaehyun’s arm, “Hi guys! Did you know that Hyung was still sleeping when I got here? That’s so _boring_.” “Yeah,” Chanhee deadpanned, “Who even sleeps anymore, honestly?” Sunwoo nodded in agreement, obviously missing Chanhee’s tone, which made Chanhee roll his eyes in annoyance.

“We should probably get ready now,” Jaehyun said before Chanhee could try to hurt Sunwoo. They all agreed, and then Sunwoo bounced down the hall, promising to return later with Haknyeon and Eric, and Kevin and Chanhee walked back to their own room. Hyunjoon followed Jaehyun back into their room. Jaehyun checked his phone again to see yet another dramatic reply from Younghoon. Hyunjoon was going through his suitcase trying to find clothes to wear, and spoke up, “Are you happy to be back here?” Jaehyun smiled a little, opening his own suitcase, “Eh, I never liked it as much as I like the open of our town. It’s so noisy. But it does make me feel a little nostalgic.” Jaehyun looked out the window down at the busy street below, and smiled as memories came back to him.

He sighed, remembering some of his previous years at the Summer Seoul Festival with his friends. The first year he had ever gone was back in his freshman year of high school. At the time, he only knew Younghoon, and it was his first time ever going to the festival because he typically spent his summers away on some fancy vacation with his family. He recalled being amazed by everything, from the busy booths, to the beautiful lanterns that shone over the street when the sun went down, and Younghoon making fun of him every time he gaped at something. He remembered it quite vividly, and he was excited to be able to feel the nostalgia again. He hadn’t been to the festival the last couple years. Last summer was when he and Chanhee had just moved to America, only two weeks after they graduated, and they’d missed the festival by a week. The year before that, they’d spent the whole summer in America for a vacation that was courtesy of Changmin’s parents. It had been so long since Jaehyun had been to the festival, and he was beyond excited.

Jaehyun and Hyunjoon met up with Kevin and Chanhee outside their room, and the four made their way down to the lobby to wait for their friends, chatting as they waited. Eventually, Jacob showed up again with Eric and the pair of little monsters, explaining that the others would meet them there. He drove them all to the parking lot, where they spotted their other friends waiting and conversing near a large water fountain. There was also an unfamiliar guy with them. Jacob led them to meet the others, and Juyeon, Sangyeon, Younghoon, and Changmin all greeted Jaehyun, saying how they had missed him at lunch. Then, Younghoon introduced the other guy as his coworker, Sunghyun, and they all happily inroduced themselves to the new arrival. Jaehyun noticed the man looking at Hyunjoon, and felt strangely annoyed. Without thinking much, he grabbed Hyunjoon’s hand. The younger boy looked at him curiously, but didn’t dare speak up in the presence of so many people.

The large group finally set off into the first of many aisles of booths, selling anything from food to alcohol (for the adults) to toys to clothes and more. They all chattered happily together, catching up from the long time they’d spent apart, and Jaehyun found his hand separated from Hyunjoon when Younghoon came over to him and began to whine that they hadn’t seen each other in forever, and then dragging him around to look at some of the booths they passed. He entertained his friend up until, out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Sunghyun approaching Hyunjoon, who was walking a little bit behind Juyeon looking around in awe. Jaehyun broke away from Younghoon to go back to Hyunjoon, but Sunghyun reached the young boy first.

Jaehyun was close enough to hear what the man said. He tapped Hyunjoon’s shoulder, causing the quiet boy to turn around and look at him in surprise when the new man handed his a small flower, smiling and saying, “Here. It’s not as beautiful as you, but it’s the closest I could get.” Hyunjoon only looked at the man in shock, and gave a small nod and smile as a thank you. Jaehyun was still a little too far to the side to interrupt, but Kevin came up behind the man, and sent him a glare, causing Sunghyun to smile again at Hyunjoon and run to catch up with Younghoon and Changmin. Chanhee followed behind Kevin, and put a hand on his shoulder to calm him down a little. Jaehyun finally reached them and sent a rather displeased look at the little flower in Hyunjoon’s hand, before he gestured for them to catch up with the others.

Hyunjoon still looked a little surprised as they kept walking, but Kevin looked quite unhappy. The large group kept walking through the aisles, trying to reach the field so they could get themselves a spot to watch the fireworks later before they all would break off into groups and explore the booths. As they walked, the four visitors sort of kept together. Kevin and Hyunjoon were unfamiliar with the environment, and Chanhee and Jaehyun had spent long enough out of the country that they felt a little bit out of place. They still interacted with their other friends, but they silently opted to stick together. That is, until Jaehyun noticed Sunghyun sliding over to try to approach Hyunjoon again. He knew that Kevin and Chanhee had noticed him as well, but before Hyunjoon could spot the man, Chanhee grabbed Hyunjoon’s shoulder and pointed to one of the booths.

“Look, a candy booth!” he said, and Hyunjoon followed his finger and gasped in excitement. “Come on,” Chanhee said, pulling Hyunjoon toward the booth, before calling back to the others, “We’ll meet up with you guys later!” Out of the corner of his eye, Jaehyun saw Sunghyun frown, but the man simply returned to walking with Younghoon, who had paid no attention to the whole interaction. Jaehyun felt himself smile, satisfied. He looked back at Kevin, who looked just as content to see the man give up. Kevin met Jaehyun’s eye and quietly said, “I don’t trust him.” Jaehyun snorted, “Believe me, I’m not fond of him either.” Kevin nodded, “He’s up to no good, and Hyunjoon’s too sweet to see it.” “Yeah,” Jaehyun agreed, “But it’s a good thing that Chanhee is a quick thinker. He really does know exactly what to do and when.” Kevin smiled, “Yeah, I’m glad that he and Hyunjoon get along. I don’t know what I would do if my two favorite people didn’t like each other.” Jaehyun nodded in understanding, and the conversation ended there.

* * *

Hyunjoon looked at the candy like an excited little kid, trying to pick something that he should buy and bring back to America with him. Behind him, Chanhee smiled, “Pick whatever you want. I’ll pay.” Hyunjoon widened his eyes at the older boy, “Really?” Chanhee nodded, and Hyunjoon grinned and hugged Chanhee as a thanks, before looking back at him options. The little flower was still tightly clutched in his hand. He was quite shocked when Sunghyun approached him and gave it to him, and even more shocked by what the man said. He wasn’t really sure why Kevin had looked angry when he walked over to them. Even Jaehyun had looked a bit annoyed. Hyunjoon wondered if Jaehyun was sick of him, or felt like he was a burden of some sort, and that he had to be taken care of. He sighed, and Chanhee looked at him, “Everything okay?”

Hyunjoon smiled back at the older boy and nodded a little, then picked a small pack of gummy candies, and Chanhee handed the money to the lady in the booth. When he got his change, they set off again. Chanhee took out his phone to text Kevin asking where they were, and Hyunjoon looked around. He had to admit, while the place was a bit too busy for his liking, he could see how much fun it was. The lanterns hung along the booths and from some street signs, waiting patiently to be lit later that night when it got dark. The sun was already beginning to set, and he heard that the fireworks would be in a few hours. He followed Chanhee as the older boy led him through the aisles, until eventually, they reached sloping grassy hill, where hundreds of people sat on blankets and chairs, eating and chatting, waiting for the fireworks once the sun went down.

Chanhee led them through the crowd, until eventually, they spotted their friends and rejoined with the group. Chanhee quickly sat down next to Kevin, and Hyunjoon found himself taking his seat next to Jaehyun. The older boy smiled at him, “You got some candy?” Hyunjoon grinned, “Yeah, Chanhee Hyung bought it for me.” Jaehyun smiled, “He's just the best.” Hyunjoon set down his little flower and opened his pack of candy. He didn’t miss the look that Jaehyun gave the flower. He thought is was strange, but didn’t ponder over it much. He looked around the group as he placed a candy in his mouth, and almost immediately noticed Sunghyun staring at him. When he caught the man’s eye, Sunghyun smiled at him.

Jaehyun followed Hyunjoon’s gaze and scowled at the man. Hyunjoon looked up at the older boy curiously, and Jaehyun looked back down at him, “What is it?” Hyunjoon tilted his head, “You don’t like him?” Jaehyun shook his head, “I don’t trust him. He seems a bit sketchy.” Hyunjoon gave him a confused look as he grabbed another little candy, “I think he seems nice.” Jaehyun frowned at his words but didn’t say anything else. Hyunjoon wondered why Jaehyun didn’t like the man even though he hardly knew him, but he decided not to push the subject, since he was a little nervous that Jaehyun would get annoyed with him if he kept being nosy.

* * *

Jaehyun stared at the dark ceiling and sighed. He thought a little about their first day back in Seoul. The fireworks were just like he remembered them, and while he enjoyed himself a lot wandering the booths, looking at the lanterns, and catching up with all of his friends, there was something that was bothering him. It was this man, Younghoon’s coworker, Sunghyun. No matter how much Jaehyun thought about it, he just really didn’t like the guy, he wondered if it was just jealousy that he was feeling. After all, it was obvious that the guy seemed to have some interest in Hyunjoon. Jaehyun wished that he could just tell the guy to back off, that Hyunjoon was his. Unfortunately though, Hyunjoon _wasn’t_ his. It was his own fault, he knew, he’d been living with the boy for the past year now, but he was still too much of a coward to actually ask Hyunjoon out.

Well, correction, it’s not exactly that he was scared of getting rejected by the younger, although, that was a small worry in the back of his head. But really, he reasoned with himself that Hyunjoon was still around him for a reason, even if they hadn’t exactly talked about their feelings for each other since that day at the beach almost two years ago. The main thing that was nagging him was that he wasn’t really sure _how_. He’d never had any experience in asking someone out, or even dating in general. He didn’t know what to do, how to do it. On top of that, he was constantly getting distracted with worries about the younger boy’s nightmares, as well as his job, staying in touch with their other friends, and even smaller things like groceries. He really needed to clear his head to think about it, but he feared he would never get the chance.

He sighed again in frustration, and next to him, Hyunjoon stirred a little, turning to face him. “Is everything okay?” the younger boy asked sleepily, “You keep sighing.” Jaehyun felt bad for a second, “I didn’t wake you up, did I?” Hyunjoon shook his head, and then another thought occurred to Jaehyun, “Did you have another nightmare?” Hyunjoon shook his head again, and Jaehyun felt relieved. “I was already awake. What about you? You keep sighing, is something wrong?” Jaehyun shook his head, “Nothing to worry about. Just a few things on my mind. I need to clear my head and stop worrying while we’re on vacation. Doing the dishes can wait till we get back I guess, right?” Hyunjoon smiled a little and nodded tiredly. Jaehyun wrapped his arm around the younger boy, and whispered good night. He heard the younger quietly whisper the words back, before he felt himself drift away to sleep.

* * *

The following day, the whole group met together again by the fountain to wander through the aisles. The plan for the day was to get lunch at the booths, and then in the afternoon, they would go to Jacob and Sangyeon’s house. The pair had moved into a small neighborhood on the outskirts of the city, and were living in a sort of small apartment, except that rather than a bunch of little apartments stacked together in one building, it was a small network of individual sets of three or four apartments attached side by side. Rather than large backyards, the apartments had large roof patios to take the place of a backyard. Jacob and Sangyeon were living together in one of these (allegedly to share the rent) and Sangyeon’s sister, Sangmi, and her husband, Minjun, lived in another one down the street from them.

On the roof, Jacob had a grill, which he used to cook his amazing meals. Of course, since the four were in town on a rare occasion, Jacob had insisted on a barbecue at their apartment, and really, no one could argue. So they wandered around the booths finding their own favorite foods for lunch. Jaehyun was rather displeased to see that Sunghyun had joined them again, and even more annoyed that he would be joining them for the barbecue later. He couldn’t help suspiciously watching the man out of the corner of his eye. He could tell that the man had an eye on Hyunjoon, which made him even more frustrated. At one point, the man sort of veered to try and walk next to Hyunjoon. In front of Jaehyun, Kevin’s shoulders tensed. Before Sunghyun could approach though, Jaehyun fell into step with the younger boy and grabbed his hand, asking what Hyunjoon wanted to eat.

As Hyunjoon looked at the booths thoughtfully, Jaehyun watched out of the corner of his eye as Sunghyun frowned and moved back over to Younghoon and Changmin. Kevin relaxed his shoulders. Jaehyun felt satisfied and followed Hyunjoon over to a smaller booth that had a wide selection of different foods. He helped the boy order and paid for his food, as well as getting himself something. When they got their food, they caught up with the others, each eating their food with one hand, since their others were still interlocked. Jaehyun spotted Sunghyun looking at them and glared at the man, who looked away with a blank expression. Jaehyun rolled his eyes, hoping that this guy will get the idea and leave Hyunjoon alone.

Hyunjoon pulled Jaehyun so they could fall into step with Kevin and Chanhee. The couple had gotten their own food as well, and smiled at them when they started walking together. Eventually, everyone in the group had gotten their food, and they were all just wandering around looking at other things in the booths. After some time, they returned to the little hill, which was significantly less crowded than the night before. They all sat down and just chatted about anything and everything, and a few of them finished their lunches. They stayed there for a while, before Jacob suggested they head to his and Sangyeon’s apartment so that he could start making dinner, and they could hang out there. They all agreed, and found a way to squish into Jacob and Sangyeon’s cars.

Jaehyun sat in Jacob’s car, which was bigger than Sangyeon’s. Hyunjoon was next to him, and Sunwoo, Haknyeon, Juyeon, and Eric were also in there. Sangyeon had taken Kevin, Chanhee, Changmin, Younghoon, and Sunghyun in his car. Jaehyun couldn’t even begin to express how relived he was that at least he didn’t have to be in the same car as Sunghyun, and nor did Hyunjoon. Jaehyun was sitting in the back seat of Jacob’s car, with Hyunjoon and Eric on either side of him. Sunwoo and Haknyeon were in the middle row, and Juyeon was in the passenger seat. The ride was shockingly quiet considering they had Sunwoo and Haknyeon, but Jaehyun wasn’t complaining. The only sounds were the car radio, and Eric’s light snoring, since the youngest had fallen asleep leaning against the window. Hyunjoon was leaning on Jaehyun’s shoulder, but Jaehyun wasn’t sure if he was asleep.

Jaehyun looked between Sunwoo and Haknyeon, wondering why they weren’t causing chaos or ruining his eardrums. Sunwoo was leaning against the window but he wasn’t asleep, he seemed to be looking out at the passing scenery. Weird. Haknyeon was looking down at his phone, and Jaehyun realized he had earbuds in. Jaehyun couldn’t figure out if something happened that made them not want to talk to each other. At one point, Juyeon looked back, presumably also wondering about the quiet, and after looking back and forth between the pair, shared a confused look with Jaehyun. In the rear view mirror, Jacob caught Jaehyun’s eye and gave him a questioning look, which Jaehyun could only return with a shake of his head. He had no idea.

The odd ride finally came to an end when the car pulled into a driveway. Sangyeon’s car was already there. Jaehyun shook Eric’s shoulder to wake him up, and then gently shook Hyunjoon awake. Jaehyun frowned noticing that Eric still wasn’t awake, but before he could react, Sunwoo yelled at the younger, “Wake up!” Eric startled awake and looked around in surprise and confusion. Jaehyun, Hyunjoon, Juyeon, Jacob, and even Haknyeon stared after Sunwoo in surprise as he stalked up the driveway and opened the front door. After several more moments of no one moving, Juyeon looked back at the others, “What just happened?”

No one answered. No one had an answer. After a few more moments of everyone recollecting themselves, Juyeon and Jacob finally opened their doors and left the car, causing Haknyeon to follow suit, still looking rather shocked, and Jaehyun got up to follow him so that Hyunjoon and Eric could also get out. Once they were out, he closed the door, and Jacob locked it. They all went inside to see the others all standing around, not realizing anything happened. Sangmi and Minjun were also there, and Haknyeon rushed to greet and hug his parents, but Jaehyun could still see a hint of confusion on his face. Next to Jaehyun, Hyunjoon tiredly rubbed his eyes, and Jaehyun fondly put and arm around the younger boy’s shoulders. The others had already begun to mingle. Jaehyun looked around for a few seconds, finally spotting Kevin and Chanhee talking with Juyeon.

Several feet away from the three, Sunghyun stood next to Younghoon. Jaehyun could tell he was watching them. Jaehyun led Hyunjoon over to Kevin, Chanhee, and Juyeon. “Hey guys,” Jaehyun greeted them, “I’m going to go look for Sunwoo.” “Oh yeah,” Juyeon said, “where did he go? He just yelled at Eric for no reason and now he’s disappeared.” Kevin and Chanhee looked surprised, but before Juyeon could explain, Jaehyun spoke again, “Yeah, I’m going to see if I can figure out what happened.” Juyeon nodded and began explaining to Chanhee what happened. Jaehyun caught Kevin’s eye and tipped his head in the direction of Sunghyun, who was clearly listening to them. Kevin nodded and pulled Hyunjoon over near him, asking if he wanted to get a glass of water.

When Jaehyun was sure Hyunjoon was safe in his brother’s capable hands, he sought out Sunwoo. He finally found the red-haired boy in the tiny backyard, that barely passed for a small patch of grass, let alone a yard. Sunwoo was sitting on the grass behind the garden that somehow fit there, and when Jaehyun walked over to him, he saw that the boy was drawing in the mud with his finger. He looked up as Jaehyun sat down next to him, “I really did miss the festival, and all of you guys.” Sunwoo glared at him, “What do you want Hyung?” Jaehyun rolled his eyes in amusement, “To figure out what’s wrong with you. What, did your puppy die or something?” Sunwoo ignored him and looked back down at the mud. Jaehyun sighed, “Fine, you clearly won’t talk to me, so it looks like I’ll have to get Haknyeon to talk to you-” “No,” Sunwoo said, stopping Jaehyun from getting up. Jaehyun smiled, “Then you want to talk to me?”

Sunwoo scowled, “Shut up Hyung.” Jaehyun shook his head, “Come on, tell me what’s up. I have a degree in psychiatry, I’m the best person to talk to.” Sunwoo glared at him again but said nothing, making Jaehyun sigh again, “Look, you don’t have to say anything right now. But I’m here if you need to talk to someone. At least come back inside. The others are going to start wondering where you are.” There were a few moments of silence. Sunwoo didn’t look up, and finally said quietly, “I don’t want to go back inside.” Jaehyun sighed yet again, “Fine, but come back when you feel ready.” With that, Jaehyun got up and went back inside, immediately seeing that most of the others must have gone up to the roof. The only person left downstairs was Sangyeon, who was preparing things to bring upstairs. Jaehyun offered to help carry some of it, which Sangyeon accepted thankfully, and continued to grab some things.

When Jaehyun reached the roof, he set the things he’d been able to hold down on the table and looked around. Jacob had called Kevin over to help his with the food, and Chanhee was lingering nearby. Jaehyun looked around, before scowling when he spotted Sunghyun talking to Hyunjoon. Hyunjoon was simply nodding a little, but Jaehyun didn’t like the way Sunghyun had put his hand on the boy’s shoulder. “Hyunjoon,” He called, catching the younger boy’s attention, “Come help me carry stuff up. Sangyeon Hyung can do it all.” Hyunjoon immediately came over to him, and Jaehyun grabbed his hand, sending a small glare back at Sunghyun, who looked annoyed. Hyunjoon looked a little relieved.

They reached the kitchen and helped Sangyeon with the last of what they needed. When they finished bringing everything up, Jaehyun looked around. Jacob was grilling food, having Kevin help him, with Chanhee nearby. Sangyeon had walked over to his sister and brother-in-law. Sunghyun had gone back to talking with Younghoon and Changmin, and Juyeon, Eric, and Haknyeon were sitting around a smaller table and chatting. Jaehyun frowned, seeing that Sunwoo still wasn’t present. Hyunjoon looked up at him, “What’s wrong?” Jaehyun sighed, “Sunwoo still isn’t up here. I’m worried about him, he seems upset about something.” Hyunjoon nodded, “Yeah, in the car, that was kind of scary.” Jaehyun nodded in agreement, thinking too much about it to reply.

* * *

Eventually, Jacob announced that the food was done, and everyone began to file around the table to get their fill. Jaehyun looked back at the door, and Hyunjoon looked up at him. Jaehyun sighed, “I’m going to go tell Sunwoo that the food is done. Maybe he’s hungry enough to come out of hiding.” Hyunjoon nodded, “I’ll go with you.” The two walked downstairs and out the back door. Sunwoo was in the same spot he’d been in before. Jaehyun sighed and spoke, “Sunwoo, the food is ready. Come and get some before it all gets eaten.” Sunwoo didn’t look up, “I’m not hungry.” Jaehyun let out a frustrated exhale, “Lies, you’re always hungry. Look, if you don’t want to talk to people, at least say that. I would get it.”

Sunwoo still didn’t move. Jaehyun looked at him for a few moments before turning back and closing the door behind Hyunjoon leading them back upstairs. “You’re just going to leave him there?” Hyunjoon asked. Jaehyun shook his head, “I’m going to bring him some food. He’s obviously hungry and is just avoiding someone.” Hyunjoon tilted his head, “Someone in particular? I thought he was just avoiding everything.” Jaehyun shook his head again as they walked out to the table. He looked at where Haknyeon was still sitting with Eric and Juyeon, now that he was observing more closely, he saw that the boy wasn’t really contributing to their conversation, and seemed to be zoning out a bit. “I think he’s avoiding Haknyeon,” Jaehyun said quietly, so that only Hyunjoon could hear, “There’s something going on with them. But Sunwoo won’t talk to me.”

Hyunjoon nodded in understanding. As Jaehyun filled a plate with food for Sunwoo, Hyunjoon spoke up again, “You could talk to Haknyeon.” Jaehyun thought about it, “You’re right.” Then he handed the plate to Hyunjoon, “Can you take this down to Sunwoo? I’ll talk to Haknyeon.” Hyunjoon nodded and wished him good luck, before grabbing a water bottle for Sunwoo as well and opening the door to go back down the stairs.

* * *

Hyunjoon carefully opened the back door and peeked out, only to find Sunwoo in the same spot and position that he’d been in just a few minutes ago. Hyunjoon sucked in a nervous breath and then walked over, crouching down in front of Sunwoo. The younger turned to look at Hyunjoon in surprise, and Hyunjoon gave him a small smile and held out the plate and water bottle. Sunwoo just stared at it for a few moments, before he finally took the plate and bottle from Hyunjoon’s hands and murmured a small, “Thank you.” Hyunjoon nodded in response and rose again. He walked toward the door, but as he reached to open it, Sunwoo called out his name, and he turned back. “Can you tell Jaehyun Hyung that I said thank you too?” Hyunjoon smiled again and nodded, before opening the door and going back upstairs.

* * *

Jaehyun grabbed his food and sat down next to Haknyeon, who didn't react. Juyeon and Eric had both gotten up, though Jaehyun wasn’t really sure where they went, and there was no one else within earshot. Jaehyun waved a hand in front of Haknyeon’s face to get his attention, but when it didn’t work, he called out the younger’s name. It took a few times for Haknyeon to finally look at him, “Sorry Hyung, did you say something.” Jaehyun sighed, “Oh goodness. Are you okay? You look so out of it I could probably steal all your food and you wouldn’t notice.” Haknyeon looked down at his mostly untouched food and said, “You can have it if you want.” Jaehyun gave him an unimpressed look, “Eat it. Jacob Hyung will be offended.”

Haknyeon stared at his food a few more moments and then finally picked it up and took a bite. The entire action was entirely too slow, and Jaehyun’s patience was wearing a bit thin, but he was determined to help the pair, so he pushed down his frustration and waited for Haknyeon to swallow the bite, before speaking again, “So, are you okay?” Haknyeon slowed nodded, taking another small bite. Jaehyun bit his lip, “Really? You seem off? You and Sunwoo both. Did something happen?” Haknyeon chewed slowly, and the silence was so slow and agonizing that Jaehyun almost got up and walked away, but finally he swallowed and spoke again, “I don’t know. I didn’t think anything was wrong, but he seemed in a bad mood this morning, and now he’s ignoring me.”

This made Jaehyun frown even harder, realizing that Haknyeon didn’t really know what was going on with Sunwoo either. “Do you remember anything happening to him this morning? Or maybe last night?” Haknyeon looked thoughtful for a few seconds, “No. although, he went to bed early last night. I just thought he was tired. Eric and I stayed up late and watched a movie. And then this morning he started being moody so we didn’t bother him.” Jaehyun processed the information, struggling to figure everything out. Haknyeon’s voice broke through his thoughts, “He’s avoiding me isn’t he?” Jaehyun looked at the younger, and Haknyeon continued, “It’s just that, he won’t talk to me, he won’t even come up here for food. And he yelled at Eric for no reason. Not even as a joke.”

Jaehyun couldn’t help feeling bad for Haknyeon, hearing the pain in his voice. He looked away passing his gaze over the rest of the group as he spoke, “I don’t know what’s happening with him. He won’t talk to me, so I figured maybe you would know, but I guess not.” Haknyeon nodded, “I’m worried.” Jaehyun silently agreed. He saw Hyunjoon return to the patio and bade Haknyeon goodbye as he went over to Hyunjoon. The younger boy was getting his own food, and looked up as Jaehyun approached, “Sunwoo told me to tell you thank you.” Jaehyun smiled, “Thank you for taking the food down for him.” Hyunjoon nodded, picking up his plate, “Did Haknyeon say anything?” “No,” Jaehyun sighed, “He doesn’t understand either. He’s worried.” Hyunjoon hummed, “Well, I hope you figure it out soon.”

* * *

The following day, Changmin’s parents wanted to see Kevin and Hyunjoon, so the three were driving several hours out to visit them. Jaehyun was sad that he wouldn’t be able to spend the day with Hyunjoon, but instead, Younghoon had invited him out to lunch. As they ate, the friends shared many jokes and laughed at each other. By the end, they had finally caught up on everything that had happened to them in the past year. They waited for their bill, still chatting a little. “So,” Younghoon asked, “Do you have any other plans for today?” Jaehyun hummed, “Well actually, I do have something I was going to do. I wanted to ask if you would help me-” “I’m not doing anything illegal,” Younghoon deadpanned, cutting him off.

Jaehyun shook his head, “It’s _not_ illegal. It just involves a lot of sticking our noses where they don’t belong-” “I’m in.” Jaehyun glared at Younghoon, “Would you stop cutting me off? And what do you mean you’re in? I haven’t even explained what we’re doing yet.” “Don’t care,” Younghoon said, “If it involves sticking my nose where it doesn’t belong then I am in. but go ahead and explain what exactly it is.” Jaehyun rolled his eyes, “You’re so easy to convince. Anyway, basically, we’re going to be fixing Sunwoo and Haknyeon’s relationship.” Younghoon gave his friend a weird look, “What is there to fix? They’re dumb but they’re still so loud and annoying.” Jaehyun looked at Younghoon for a second before remembering that he probably didn’t hear the events of the previous afternoon. So he explained everything that had happened to Younghoon.

When he finished, Younghoon nodded thoughtfully, “This is a very serious issue. The word quiet should never be used to describe those two. Something’s definitely wrong with Sunwoo.” Jaehyun nodded, “Exactly, so we’re going to figure out what it is and fix it. Should we see if the others want to help?” Younghoon nodded and took out his phone, “You text Chanhee and Eric, I’ll get Juyeon, Sangyeon Hyung, and Jacob Hyung.” They ended up sitting there for another ten minutes. Finally, Younghoon spoke up, “Did you get answers?” Jaehyun nodded, “Eric and Chanhee both want to help. What about you?” Younghoon frowned, “Well Juyeon said yes, but Sangyeon Hyung and Jacob Hyung said that we shouldn’t be getting involved in their issues.”

Jaehyun shook his head in disappointment, “They are not well mastered in the art of getting in everyone’s business.” Younghoon nodded in agreement, “They don’t understand how to stick their noses where they don’t belong. So sad.” They both nodded silently for a few moments, before they burst out laughing. They ended up meeting with Chanhee, Eric, and Juyeon at Juyeon’s apartment to figure out what to do. “Alright Eric,” Younghoon said, “Report on the living situation.” Eric frowned, “It’s not too good. They share a room, but Sunwoo slept on the couch last night. Haknyeon tried to convince him to go back to their room, but Sunwoo ignored him.” Jaehyun sighed, “That’s concerning.” They all nodded in agreement.

Suddenly, Younghoon’s phone buzzed, and he pulled it out. Jaehyun glared at him, “Now isn’t the time to be on your phone Younghoon, we need to think.” Younghoon sighed, “Changmin said they’re staying the night at his parents house since one of his sisters is flying in late tonight and she wants to see them too.” Chanhee threw his hands up, “Great, now I’m going to be cold tonight!” Jaehyun frowned, but didn’t say anything, though he felt the same as Chanhee. Juyeon rolled his eyes, “Great, let’s get back to planning.” Before he could even finish speaking, Eric’s phone began ringing. They all looked at each other, and then Juyeon sighed, “At least check who it is.”

Eric took out his phone and looked at the caller ID, “It’s Sunwoo.” “Answer it,” Younghoon said. The moment Eric said, “Hello,” they all heard Sunwoo’s voice loudly through the phone despite it not being on speaker phone, “ERIC I NEED YOU TO COME HOME RIGHT NOW DON’T ASK WHY.” With that, Sunwoo hung up. Eric blinked at the rest of the group for several seconds. Finally Jaehyun shook his head, “Go ahead I guess. It’s not a good idea to get on Sunwoo’s bad side, especially not when he’s been acting the way he has.” Eric frowned but got up and bade them all goodbye. When he left, Chanhee leaned back, “Now what?” Younghoon shrugged, “Maybe we should wait until Eric tells us what’s up? I mean it’s probably information that will be helpful for what we’re doing so you know.” They all nodded in agreement and waited for Eric to call one of them.

It grew late into the night without a reply. They had all texted Eric asking him to inform them on the situation, and still had received no reply. Younghoon ordered them pizza for dinner, and eventually they decided to watch movies to pass the time. They were halfway through the third movie, well past 1 am, and Chanhee and Younghoon both fast asleep, when Juyeon’s phone buzzed. Jaehyun paused the movie while Juyeon checked his message and told Jaehyun to wake up Chanhee and Younghoon. Jaehyun did so as Juyeon called Eric, putting him on speaker. When Eric’s voice spoke up on the other end to say hello, they asked him what happened. “Well,” Eric said, sounding tired, “Let’s just say you don’t need to conspire to fix Sunwoo and Haknyeon anymore.” There was a pause, and Juyeon asked, “What happened?” Eric sighed, “Long story. Lots of mediating. I need to go to bed. I’ll give you the details tomorrow.”

With that, Eric hung up. Younghoon sighed, “You mean we waited for nothing?” Juyeon snorted, “It’s not like you could have been with Changmin instead.” Younghoon glared at him. Jaehyun put his hands up, yawning, “Let’s just all go home and go to bed. It’s late, and Eric said he’ll tell us everything tomorrow.” They all nodded, and slowly, Chanhee, Jaehyun, and Younghoon gathered what they had brought with them. Younghoon walked back to his own apartment (he lived upstairs) and Chanhee and Jaehyun got an uber back to their hotel. Jaehyun took a shower, and then sat down on the edge of his bed, plugging his phone in. It was around 2:30. Jaehyun texted Hyunjoon, _The bed is cold without you_ . He set his phone on the table and laid down, but after a moment, his phone buzzed. He saw the reply from Hyunjoon, _You’ll get over it_ . Jaehyun smiled and set back the quick reply of, _It’s late. Go to sleep_ . A moment later, _Good night then!_ Jaehyun put his phone back on the table and closed his eyes, smiling.

* * *

Eric finished speaking with a tired sigh, and took a drink of his water. “Wow,” Younghoon said, “Can’t believe we missed _that_.” “I know right?” Jaehyun sighed, “And now we can’t even stick our noses where they don’t belong! Why did they have to solve their problems by themselves?” “Hey,” Eric said, offended, “It wasn’t by themselves, I did half of it!” Jaehyun shook his head, “Still, it’s just not the same. But good job though, you finally did what no one else could do. You made those two dumbasses realize their feelings for each other.” Eric grunted, “Only took me five hours and my few remaining pieces of fucking sanity. I’m never doing that again, by the way, so y’all better work out your relationship issues by yourselves. Got it?” They all laughed a little and agreed.

Their whole group went back out to the booths that afternoon, to celebrate Sunwoo and Haknyeon’s new relationship, because apparently the friends liked to celebrate when people started dating. That was the way to do it, apparently. Whatever. Changmin, Kevin, and Hyunjoon were driving back to the city and promised to meet the rest of them there, and they did. Jaehyun had to turn away from Younghoon and Changmin’s reunion, resisting the urge to gag. Chanhee and Kevin at least just hugged. The moment that Hyunjoon appeared next to Jaehyun though, he immediately wrapped his arms around the younger boy, and Hyunjoon returned the gesture, smiling happily. They all set off back down the aisles, chatting easily about Sunwoo and Haknyeon, as well as Kevin, Changmin, and Hyunjoon’s trip to see Changmin’s parents.

Much to Jaehyun’s disapproval, Sunghyun was with them, but Jaehyun couldn’t be bothered to pay the man any mind today. All his attention was on Hyunjoon, who was holding his hand and walking quietly but happily next to him. He knew Sunghyun was probably looking at Hyunjoon again, but he didn’t bother to care, because he was just happy that Hyunjoon was next to him again. As always, Sunghyun was walking quietly next to Younghoon. Even Kevin was more interested in hearing from Chanhee about Sunwoo and Haknyeon to be sending glares to the man. Overall, it seemed like it was just a good day. The group of friends spent hours wandering the aisles. They got dinner there, and the four visitors looked for souvenirs to take back to America with them and decorate their condo in. again, the group decided to stay to watch the fireworks, and by the time Jaehyun and Hyunjoon returned to their hotel room, they both showered and went straight to bed.

* * *

Hyunjoon woke to a sudden sharp knocking on the door of their hotel room. He looked over in the dark. Jaehyun’s shoulder rose and fell slowly, meaning he was still asleep. Hyunjoon rubbed his eyes and rose carefully and quietly. Not thinking to use the peephole, he opened the door, prepared to give some cleaning lady a look that read _it’s the middle of the night, what are you doing here knocking on the door_ , but instead he was greeted by Sunghyun’s face. Before he could even give the man said look, Sunghyun grabbed Hyunjoon’s wrist and pulled him out into the hallway, quietly saying something about showing him something. Hyunjoon didn’t have time to react before he was being dragged down the hallway to God knows where. The door slammed closed behind him, and he could only hope it woke up Jaehyun.

* * *

Jaehyun startled awake to the sound of a door slamming closed. Hyunjoon wasn’t laying next to him. Without thinking, he threw on his shoes and rushed out of his room, only to see Hyunjoon disappear around the corner at the end of the hall, being pulled along by another figure. Jaehyun felt his face burn in anger and rushed after. As he passed Kevin and Chanhee’s door, it opened presumably due to the commotion. H heard the pair’s voices behind them, and then the sound of them following after him, but he stayed focused on his goal. Rather than waiting for the elevator, he raced to the stairs and began his descent. He was on the ninth floor, but he could only hope he would be fast enough.

* * *

Hyunjoon finally felt himself stop being dragged, and when he looked up, he saw that he was standing on the deck by the hotel pool. Sunghyun stood in front of him, smiling, and Hyunjoon gave the man a strange look. Sunghyun shrugged, “What? It’s always fun to go for a night swim. Come on.” Without another warning, the man jumped into the pool. Hyunjoon slowly backed away, unsure of what to do. From the water, Sunghyun smiled at him, “Come on, get in. it’s nice and cool.” Hyunjoon shook his head vigorously, eyeing the water in nervous fear. Sunghyun didn’t seem to pick up on it and continued trying to get Hyunjoon to come into the water, until finally he gave up, “Fine, but at least help me out then.” Hyunjoon hesitated, but finally walked forward and took the extended hand, but before he could pull, he found himself yanked forward and plunged into icy cold darkness.

* * *

Jaehyun slammed through the door to the pool area, only to see Hyunjoon just as the boy went crashing into the water. From the edge of the pool, Sunghyun sat grinning for a second, before seemingly realizing that something was wrong. Rather than moving to help, however, he sat frozen, staring. Without missing a beat, Jaehyun raced out onto the pool deck and dove into the water. He quickly wrapped his arms around Hyunjoon’s struggling form, and pulled him to the surface, and to the edge of the pool deck. Kevin and Chanhee both rushed forward to help pull Hyunjoon up onto the deck, and then help Jaehyun up. Kevin ran to grab towels and then returned, throwing one over Hyunjoon’s shoulders and giving the other to Jaehyun. Thankfully, Hyunjoon didn’t have much water to cough up, so instead he just sat shivering, a terrified look in his eyes. Behind them, they heard more water splash, and they turned to see Sunghyun getting out of the water and coming over to them, “Hyunjoon are you oka-” 

He was cut off by Chanhee rushing forward and blocking him, “Oh Hell no you don’t. You really think you can almost kill him and then just ask if he’s okay? What the Hell is wrong with you?? You didn’t even try to help him, you absolute piece of shit. Get the Hell out of here, and never show your face to me again, or the last thing you will ever see will be the fire in my fucking eyes.” The man stumbled back in surprise, before taking off, and Chanhee crouched back down by Hyunjoon. Kevin put a hand on his boyfriend’s shoulders to calm him. Jaehyun looked back at Hyunjoon, “Are you okay?” The younger boy nodded slowly, and then pushed out a small, “Thank you” through his chattering teeth. They stayed there for a little while longer, waiting for Hyunjoon to warm up a little, before they rose and began to make their way back upstairs. Jaehyun kept an arm firmly wrapped around Hyunjoon, “Do you want to shower again?” After a moment, Hyunjoon nodded, “I feel….numb.” Jaehyun nodded.

They returned to their rooms. Kevin and Chanhee did one last check to make sure that Hyunjoon was alright before going back into their own room. After Hyunjoon took a shower, Jaehyun took one as well, mostly because he didn’t want chlorine smell in his hair, even if he wasn’t really in there long enough to get it, he didn’t want to take the risk. When he got out, the room was dark, and he saw Hyunjoon’s outline on the bed. He went to his phone and checked the time, 4:30, and shook his head. He sat down on the edge of the bed and looked at Hyunjoon. “Are you awake?” he asked quietly. There was no response, and Hyunjoon didn’t move, so Jaehyun could only assume he was. He sighed and gently ran a hand through the younger boy’s hair, which was still damp. “I hate that guy so much,” he muttered, thinking about Sunghyun, shaking his head.

Jaehyun looked back at Hyunjoon’s sleeping form and smiled a little, “God, I really love you, you know that? If only I wasn’t such an idiot, then maybe I could figure out some way to ask you out. Then I wouldn’t have to worry about people like him trying to go after you, you’d be mine. But no, I can’t come up with something, and you deserve better.” Jaehyun sighed, feeling annoyed with himself. He smiled again, looking at Hyunjoon, and he leaned down and gently kissed the younger boy’s forehead. He sat back up, preparing to lay down and go to sleep himself, when suddenly, Hyunjoon’s eyes opened. Jaehyun froze, and his own eyes widened. Hyunjoon looked at him and sat up slowly, rubbing his eyes a little and blinking slowly. Jaehyun prepared for the worst, but then Hyunjoon wrapped his arms around Jaehyun’s neck, burying his face in the older boy’s shoulder. Jaehyun sat frozen in surprise for a moment, but then wrapped his own arms around Hyunjoon to return the gesture.

Jaehyun wasn’t sure how long they stayed like that, but eventually he heard Hyunjoon mumble a quiet “Thank you”. Jaehyun frowned in confusion, remembering that Hyunjoon had already thanked him earlier, but before he could ask, the boy continued, “I thought….I thought maybe you didn’t love me anymore….” Jaehyun finally understood, and pulled away, shaking his head, “Never. I just, I’m not really sure what to do? I don’t really have experience in this sort of thing, but I can tell you one thing. I do love, I promise, and I’m sorry that you thought I didn’t.” Hyunjoon looked ready to cry, and he smiled, giving a small “I love you too.” Jaehyun smiled, and wrapped his arms back around the younger and kissing his head. They stayed like that for a while, before finally laying back down and closing their eyes. Both fell asleep smiling that night.

* * *

Jaehyun shoved his extra clothes into his bag, humming a little. As he moved to open his suitcase again, he heard a slight rustling behind him, and he turned to see Hyunjoon sitting up, rubbing his eyes. Jaehyun smiled softly, “Good morning.” Hyunjoon nodded, and Jaehyun turned to the bathroom to get his toothbrush. Hyunjoon gave him a weird look, “What are you doing?” Jaehyun continued packing things into his smaller bag as he spoke, “My family lives a couple hours out of the city, and my sister is in town, so I’m going to see them.” He turned back to look at Hyunjoon, “Do you want to come with me? It’s fine if you don’t. You can always spend the day with Kevin and Chanhee, I don’t think they’ll mind.” When Hyunjoon didn’t answer, Jaehyun looked back at the boy, only to see him looking down. Jaehyun sat down on the bed in front of Hyunjoon, “What’s wrong?”

Hyunjoon blinked up at him. After a moment, the younger boy spoke quietly, “What are we?” Jaehyun thought for a moment, “What do you want to be?” Hyunjoon looked away. Jaehyun sighed, running a hand through his hair, “Like I said last night, I don’t really know how to ask you out.” Hyunjoon pursed his lips, “You can just ask me. I don’t need anything special, just, you know.” Jaehyun smiled, “Alright then, will you be my boyfriend?” Hyunjoon smiled back and nodded. Jaehyun embraced the younger boy tightly. Eventually they broke away, and Jaehyun checked the time on his phone, “So do you want to come with me?” Hyunjoon nodded, and Jaehyun grinned, “Alright. Then pack a small bag for overnight. Maybe grab some snacks for the ride too. It’s a few hours.” When they finally walked out of the hotel, hand in hand, it was a little before 10 am.

* * *

Jaehyun led Hyunjoon off the train and into the station, looking around for his father, who had promised to pick them up. When he spotted the man, he pulled Hyunjoon over and embraced his father, having missed him. He introduced Hyunjoon to his father, and the man happily greeted him, causing Hyunjoon to be a little less nervous. Jaehyun’s dad spent the car ride back to his house asking about America. When they pulled through the front gates of the house, Hyunjoon gaped. Jaehyun laughed a little, “What?” Hyunjoon blinked at him, “It’s like five times bigger than our house!” Jaehyun shrugged, “A little too big if you ask me. I never liked living here. Too much space, it felt empty.” From the driver’s seat, Jaehyun’s father shook his head, “It’s luxury Jaehyun. I’ll never understand how you don’t like it.” Jaehyun only shrugged again, and his dad sighed, “You’re simple, just like your mother. Not a bad thing, but I don’t get it.”

Hyunjoon lightly punched Jaehyun’s shoulder, “You always said it was weird how Sangyeon Hyung’s sister lived in such a big house and yet you grew up here.” Jaehyun laughed, “Listen, if you spend enough time living in apartments in the city, no matter how rich you grew up, you get a weird feeling seeing a small family living in a big house.” They finally went inside, and Jaehyun greeted his mother and older sister, also introducing them to Hyunjoon. Once they were done with formalities, they had lunch in the dining room. By this time, Hyunjoon had finally stopped looking around in amazement, but when the food was brought in again, he stared at the wide selection. Jaehyun couldn’t help smiling as the younger boy mumbled, “I’m not even that hungry.” Jaehyun’s sister, Jieun, smiled at him, “Don’t worry. Whatever we don’t eat, the staff members will eat it.” Jaehyun’s mother sighed a little, “You know, sometimes we get so lonely eating in here all by ourselves that we ask the staff members to eat with us.”

Jaehyun shook his head, but smiled nonetheless, having missed his family a lot. They spent the duration of lunch catching up. After lunch, they got back in the car and drove to small amusement park. On the drive there, Jieun told them about her recent trip to Spain with her husband, and Jaehyun’s father told them about some of the new renovations in his business. They all spent the day enjoying the company of each other and getting to know Hyunjoon. By the time they returned to the large house, it was pretty late, so Jaehyun’s parents took them to one of the many many rooms, and bade them good night. Jaehyun looked at Hyunjoon and laughed a little, as the younger boy practically curled up on the bed the moment Jaehyun’s parents left. Jaehyun managed to convince Hyunjoon to take a shower before going to bed. When Jaehyun got out of the shower himself, Hyunjoon was laying down, but turned over when he approached the bed.

Jaehyun smiled, “Did you have fun today?” Hyunjoon nodded happily, “Your family is great. But I still wasn’t expecting you to be rich.” Jaehyun chuckled, “Well, technically I’m not. My parents are. Which is cool and all, but I’m perfectly fine with the way our lives are, you know? I don’t need some big house or expensive clothes. But I don’t mind visiting every now and then and getting to remember my childhood.” Hyunjoon nodded. Jaehyun laid down and wrapped his arms around Hyunjoon, whispering, “Good night. And I love you.” He couldn’t see the younger boy, but he knew Hyunjoon was smiling when he replied, “I love you too.”

* * *

Jaehyun sighed sadly, watching Jacob’s car drive away from the airport in the darkness. He had had a lot of fun with his friends in Korea, and he really did miss them all, but it was time for him, Kevin, Chanhee, and Hyunjoon to return to America. They had already said goodbye to most of their friends back at Sangyeon and Jacob’s house, since they decided to spend their last day there with another barbecue. Then, Jacob had driven them all to the airport. Jaehyun wasn’t ready to leave his friends again, but he was excited, because they were leaving with good news. Before they’d left, Sangyeon had informed them that the others in the group had talked together, and had made the decision to move to America to live with them. Jaehyun had insisted that they didn’t have to, but Juyeon had stated that he didn’t like the city anyway.

Juyeon said that his sister and her kids were also ready to move back to America and be in a slower paced town, and Sangyeon had expressed the same. It wouldn’t be for another few months, but Jaehyun was excited that after that, he would be able to see his friends more often again. Chanhee, Kevin, and Hyunjoon were also excited. The four were happily discussing it as they went through the security and found their gate. They were flying overnight again, and Jaehyun knew he wouldn’t sleep again, but he didn’t mind all that much, as long as Hyunjoon got some sleep. When they finally took off, Jaehyun watched out the window as the city lights of Seoul grew smaller beneath them. Hyunjoon was already leaning against his shoulder, likely fast asleep. Jaehyun silently said goodbye again to his friends, but not forever.

**Author's Note:**

> Editing is Hell and I gave up after just going through and fixing the stuff in red underline, so if there's some incomprehensible grammar in here somewhere, y'all know why.
> 
> I tried writing a kiss scene but I just couldn't do it, I'm sorry.
> 
> Thank you for reading! I hope you liked it.


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